# John Westley

Rev. John Wesley (1636–1678) was an English nonconformist minister. He was the grandfather of John Wesley (founder of Methodism).

## Life

John Wesly (his own spelling), Westley, or Wesley was probably born at Bridport, Dorset, although some authorities claim he was born in Devon, the son of the Rev. Bartholomew Westley and Ann Colley, daughter of Sir Henry Colley of Carbery Castle in County Kildare, Ireland. He was educated at Dorchester Grammar School and as a student of New Inn Hall, Oxford, where he matriculated on 23 April 1651, and graduated B.A. on 23 January 1655, and M.A. on 4 July 1657. After his appointment as an evangelist, he preached at Melcombe Regis, Radipole, and other areas in Dorset. Never episcopally ordained, he was approved by Oliver Cromwell's Commission of Triers in 1658 and appointed Vicar of Winterborne Whitechurch.
The report of his interview in 1661 with Gilbert Ironside the elder, his diocesan, according to Alexander Gordon writing in the Dictionary of National Biography, shows him to have been an Independent. He was imprisoned for not using the Book of Common Prayer, imprisoned again and ejected in 1662. After the Conventicle Act 1664 he continued to preach in small gatherings at Preston and then Poole, until his death at Preston in 1678.

## Family

He married a daughter of John White, who was related also to Thomas Fuller. White, the "Patriarch of Dorchester", married a sister of Cornelius Burges. Westley's eldest son was Timothy (born 1659). Their second son was Rev. Samuel Wesley, a High Church Anglican vicar and the father of John and Charles Wesley. A younger son, Matthew Wesley, remained a nonconformist, became a London apothecary, and died on 10 June 1737, leaving a son, Matthew, in India; he provided for some of his brother Samuel's daughters.
vteWesley family tree :
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Bartholomew Westley b.1596 | Bartholomew Westley b.1596 | Bartholomew Westley b.1596 | Bartholomew Westley b.1596 | Bartholomew Westley b.1596 | Bartholomew Westley b.1596 | | | Anne Colley | Anne Colley | Anne Colley | Anne Colley | Anne Colley | Anne Colley | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ? a (daughter of John White) | ? a (daughter of John White) | ? a (daughter of John White) | ? a (daughter of John White) | ? a (daughter of John White) | ? a (daughter of John White) | | | John Westley b.1638 | John Westley b.1638 | John Westley b.1638 | John Westley b.1638 | John Westley b.1638 | John Westley b.1638 | | | Samuel Annesley b.1620 | Samuel Annesley b.1620 | Samuel Annesley b.1620 | Samuel Annesley b.1620 | Samuel Annesley b.1620 | Samuel Annesley b.1620 | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Timothy Wesley (born 1659) | Timothy Wesley (born 1659) | Timothy Wesley (born 1659) | Timothy Wesley (born 1659) | Timothy Wesley (born 1659) | Timothy Wesley (born 1659) | Matthew Wesley | Matthew Wesley | Matthew Wesley | Matthew Wesley | Matthew Wesley | Matthew Wesley | | | Samuel Wesley (b.1662) | Samuel Wesley (b.1662) | Samuel Wesley (b.1662) | Samuel Wesley (b.1662) | Samuel Wesley (b.1662) | Samuel Wesley (b.1662) | | | Susanna Wesley (b.1669) | Susanna Wesley (b.1669) | Susanna Wesley (b.1669) | Susanna Wesley (b.1669) | Susanna Wesley (b.1669) | Susanna Wesley (b.1669) |
| Samuel (Sammy) Wesley (b.1690) | Samuel (Sammy) Wesley (b.1690) | Samuel (Sammy) Wesley (b.1690) | Samuel (Sammy) Wesley (b.1690) | Samuel (Sammy) Wesley (b.1690) | Samuel (Sammy) Wesley (b.1690) | | | Emilia (Emily) Wesley (b.1692) | Emilia (Emily) Wesley (b.1692) | Emilia (Emily) Wesley (b.1692) | Emilia (Emily) Wesley (b.1692) | Emilia (Emily) Wesley (b.1692) | Emilia (Emily) Wesley (b.1692) | | | Mary (Molly) Wesley (b.1696) | Mary (Molly) Wesley (b.1696) | Mary (Molly) Wesley (b.1696) | Mary (Molly) Wesley (b.1696) | Mary (Molly) Wesley (b.1696) | Mary (Molly) Wesley (b.1696) | | | Anne Wesley (b.1702) | Anne Wesley (b.1702) | Anne Wesley (b.1702) | Anne Wesley (b.1702) | Anne Wesley (b.1702) | Anne Wesley (b.1702) | | | Martha Wesley (b.1706) | Martha Wesley (b.1706) | Martha Wesley (b.1706) | Martha Wesley (b.1706) | Martha Wesley (b.1706) | Martha Wesley (b.1706) | | | Kezia Wesley (b.1709) | Kezia Wesley (b.1709) | Kezia Wesley (b.1709) | Kezia Wesley (b.1709) | Kezia Wesley (b.1709) | Kezia Wesley (b.1709) |
| | | | | Nine children (deceased) | Nine children (deceased) | Nine children (deceased) | Nine children (deceased) | Nine children (deceased) | Nine children (deceased) | | | Susanna Wesley (b.1695) | Susanna Wesley (b.1695) | Susanna Wesley (b.1695) | Susanna Wesley (b.1695) | Susanna Wesley (b.1695) | Susanna Wesley (b.1695) | | | Mehetabel Wesley (b.1697) | Mehetabel Wesley (b.1697) | Mehetabel Wesley (b.1697) | Mehetabel Wesley (b.1697) | Mehetabel Wesley (b.1697) | Mehetabel Wesley (b.1697) | | | John Wesley (b.1703) | John Wesley (b.1703) | John Wesley (b.1703) | John Wesley (b.1703) | John Wesley (b.1703) | John Wesley (b.1703) | | | Mary Vazeille | Mary Vazeille | Mary Vazeille | Mary Vazeille | Mary Vazeille | Mary Vazeille | | | Charles Wesley (b.1797) | Charles Wesley (b.1797) | Charles Wesley (b.1797) | Charles Wesley (b.1797) | Charles Wesley (b.1797) | Charles Wesley (b.1797) | Sarah Gwynne | Sarah Gwynne | Sarah Gwynne | Sarah Gwynne | Sarah Gwynne | Sarah Gwynne |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Seven other children (deceased) | Seven other children (deceased) | Seven other children (deceased) | Seven other children (deceased) | Seven other children (deceased) | Seven other children (deceased) | | | Charles Wesley (b.1757) | Charles Wesley (b.1757) | Charles Wesley (b.1757) | Charles Wesley (b.1757) | Charles Wesley (b.1757) | Charles Wesley (b.1757) | | | Sarah (Sally) Wesley (b.1759) | Sarah (Sally) Wesley (b.1759) | Sarah (Sally) Wesley (b.1759) | Sarah (Sally) Wesley (b.1759) | Sarah (Sally) Wesley (b.1759) | Sarah (Sally) Wesley (b.1759) |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Charlotte Louise Martin | Charlotte Louise Martin | Charlotte Louise Martin | Charlotte Louise Martin | Charlotte Louise Martin | Charlotte Louise Martin | | | Samuel Wesley (b.1766) | Samuel Wesley (b.1766) | Samuel Wesley (b.1766) | Samuel Wesley (b.1766) | Samuel Wesley (b.1766) | Samuel Wesley (b.1766) | | | Sarah Suter | Sarah Suter | Sarah Suter | Sarah Suter | Sarah Suter | Sarah Suter | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Three children | Three children | Three children | Three children | Three children | Three children | | | Samuel Sebastian Wesley (b.1810) | Samuel Sebastian Wesley (b.1810) | Samuel Sebastian Wesley (b.1810) | Samuel Sebastian Wesley (b.1810) | Samuel Sebastian Wesley (b.1810) | Samuel Sebastian Wesley (b.1810) |